The concept may need some rethinking, but it’s still an important way to preserve some of our most treasured land.
Features
Posted inJuly 21, 2014: On the Wild Edge
Motorheads gone wild
An off-roading conservationist navigates some gnarly landscape on the road to more protection for the Utah desert.
Posted inJune 23, 2014: River of No Return
River of no return
Seattle’s Duwamish has been straightened, dredged and heavily polluted. Can a Superfund cleanup bring it back to life?
Posted inJune 9, 2014: Border Out of Control
Border out of control
National security runs roughshod over the Arizona wild.
Posted inMay 26, 2014: The Great Gun Rights Divide
Excerpt from “The Ogallala Road”
An author returns to a family farm in Kansas to explore drought and depletion.
Posted inMay 26, 2014: The Great Gun Rights Divide
The great gun-rights divide
A liberal gun owner finds ‘gun nuts’ on both sides of the debate.
Posted inMay 12, 2014: Parks for All?
Parks for all?
The National Park Service struggles to connect with a changing America.
Posted inApril 28, 2014: Two-Wheel Revolution
Two-wheel revolution in Gallup
Can a bunch of trails and bikes transform this down-and-out New Mexico town?
Posted inApril 14, 2014: A landscape of surprises
Mind over mountain
As adaptive adventure sports boom in the West, a paralyzed athlete pushes his limits.
Posted inMarch 17, 2014: When California Kicks Coal
Go West, clean megawatts
Nevada stakes its renewable energy future on California.
Posted inMarch 17, 2014: When California Kicks Coal
Navajo Nation bets on coal
A tribe digs into a dying industry.
Posted inMarch 17, 2014: When California Kicks Coal
California’s energy policies have ripple effects across the West
As the Golden State shifts from coal to clean, economies in other states feel it too.
Posted inMarch 3, 2014: Fallon’s deadly legacy
Fallon, Nevada’s deadly legacy
In a small town once plagued by childhood cancer, some families still search for answers.
Posted inFebruary 17, 2014: The Gila $olution
Ranchers, enviros and officials seek a middle path on public-land grazing
Moving beyond stalemate to meaningful reform in Utah.
Posted inFebruary 17, 2014: The Gila $olution
Can a grazing buyout program ease life for wolves and ranchers?
A fledgling effort in New Mexico’s ‘Yellowstone of the South.’
Posted inFebruary 3, 2014: The Hanford Whistleblowers
The Hanford Whistleblowers
For decades, insiders have reported problems in the cleanup of our worst nuclear mess — but is anyone listening?
Posted inJanuary 20, 2014: Building a More Sustainable West, One City at a Time
The Vegas Paradox
In Sin City, excess and efficiency walk hand-in-hand.
Posted inJanuary 20, 2014: Building a More Sustainable West, One City at a Time
Is basic solar technology the key to an energy revolution?
Plain old photovoltaic panels and innovations in energy storage and distributed generation could remake our electricity system.
Posted inDecember 23, 2013: Beauty or Beast
Eucalyptus: Beauty or Beast?
Restoration pits these exotics against California natives. But for some, they’re a natural.
Posted inDecember 9, 2013: The Tree Coroners
The Tree Coroners
To save the West’s forests, scientists must first learn how trees die.